Butt plate for gunstocks



March 1934- o. B. EMSWILER BUTT PLATE FOR GUNSTOCKS Filed 22. 1932 l v? FI E/u a m Patented Mar. 13, 1934 STATES PATENT 2 Claims.

My invention relates to an improved butt plate for the stocks of guns and particularly the stocks of rifles such as used in target shooting. An important object of the invention is the provision of a butt plate having a highly efficient non-skid shoulder-engaging outer surface which when the butt plate is positioned on the shoulder of a marksman, will firmly grip the shoulder or overlying clothing and hold the butt end of a rifle against accidental slipping or skidding movements, thereby increasing the accuracy of shots fired. Another important object of the invention is the provision of a butt plate of the above described character that can readily be shaped to fit different rifle butts, will thereafter remain in that shape, and may be readily securely but detachably anchored to the rifle stock.

Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices, combinations, of devices and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing, which illustrates the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary butt end perspective view of a gun stock having one of my improved butt plates applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in side elevation with some parts sectioned on the line 22 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary edge view with some parts sectioned on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

The stock of a gun, not shown, is indicated by 4 and the applied improved butt plate is indicated as an entirety by 5. The butt plate is formed of resilient material, preferably a rubber composition, having embedded therein and completely surrounded thereby, a metal reinforcing and anchoring plate 6. This reinforcing and anchoring plate 6 is cast in the resilient material of the butt plate 5, and is provided with large perforations 7 and smaller perforations 8. During the process of vulcanization, the rubber flows through the apertures '7 and 8 and unites the opposed rubber sections of the butt plate, thereby positively preventing separation of either side thereof from the metal anchoring and reinforcing plate 6.

The butt plate is rigidly but detachably secured to the butt of the gun stock by means of anchoring screws 9, said screws being passed through aligned apertures in the opposed resilient sections of the butt plate and the intermediate anchoring and reinforcnig plate 6 there-- of and being screw-threaded into the gun stock. The heads of the screws 9 are larger than the screw-receiving apertures in the anchoring plate 6 and react against said anchoring plate to draw the butt plate tightly against the butt of the gun stock when said screws are screwed down tight. The screw-receiving apertures in the outor section of the resilient material of the butt plate are sufficiently large to freely receive the heads of the screws and the said outer sections extend beyond the outermost portions of said screw heads. The butt plate is shaped to fit the contour of the butt of the gun stock and is held in that shape by the reinforcing and anchoring plate 6.

It is highly desirable to provide a butt plate having a highly eflicient non-skid outer surface and to this end, the outer face or surface of my improved butt plate is formed with a plurality of laterally spaced V-shaped grooves 10 that extend transversely across the butt plate and a plurality of similar parallel V-shaped groves 11 that extend longitudinally of the butt plate and are at right angles to and intersect the said grooves 10. These V-shaped groves l0 and 11 divide the outer face of the butt plate into a plurality of transversely and longitudinally extended rows of pyramidal anti-skid lugs 12, the apex portions of which are substantially pointed, see Fig. 2. These resilient lugs 12 grip the shoulder or overlying clothing when the gun is being used and hold the gun against accidental slipping movements.

The anchoring and reinforcing plate 6 is preferably formed of soft and therefore readily dcformable sheet metal, which when bent to a desired shape, will stay in that shape so that the butt plates made in accordance with the invention may be turned out in flat formation and thereafter readily bent to fit the contours of different gun stocks.

From the foregoing it will be evident that the improved butt plate is inexpensive to manufacture, is practically indestructible, may be readily detachably anchored to the gun stock, and will, due to the nature of its outer face, hold the gun against accidental slipping movements on the shoulder of a marksman when the gun is in use, or on a base of support when the gun is resting on its base plate.

What I claim is:

l. A resilient butt plate for rifle stocks having embedded therein and completely surrounded thereby a perforated readily deformable reinforcing and anchoring plate that extends throughout the major area thereof, the outer or shoulder ongaging surface of said resilient butt plate being formed with a plurality of laterally spaced V- shaped grooves that extend transversely thereacross, and a plurality of parallel V-shaped groves extending longitudinally of the butt plate and at right angles to and intersecting the said transverse grooves, said grooves dividing the outer surface of the butt plate into a plurality of transversely and longitudinally extended rows of resilient pyramidal anti-skid lugs terminating in sharp points, said butt plate being so relatively thin that it Will not have a sufiicient degree of resilience to materially absorb recoil, but the'pyramidal lugs thereof having sufficient resilience to be highly effective in gripping the engaged clothing of a marksman and firmly holding the butt end of the gun against slipping movement.

2. A resilient butt plate for rifle gun stocks having embedded therein and completely surrounded thereby a perforated reinforcing and anchoring plate that extends throughout the major area thereof, the outer or shoulder-engaging surface of said resilient butt plate being formed with a plurality of laterally spaced V-shaped grooves that extend transversely thereacross, and a plurality of parallel V-shaped grooves extending longitudinally of the butt plate and at right angles to and intersecting the said transverse grooves, said grooves dividing the outer surface of the butt plate into a plurality of transversely and longitudinally extended rows of resilient pyramidal anti-skid lugs terminating in sharp points, said butt plate being so relatively thin that it will not have a sufficient degree of resilience to materially absorb recoil, but the pyramidal lugs thereof having suflicient resilience 'to be highly effective in gripping the engaged clothing of a marksman and firmly holding the butt end of the gun against slipping movement.

OWIN B. EMSWILER. 

